Hummingbirds are known for their vibrant, iridescent colors. While ruby-throated, rufous, and Anna’s hummingbirds display brilliant splashes of red, many hummingbird species also feature yellow plumage. In fact, over a dozen different hummingbirds exhibit some yellow coloring in their feathers.
Types of hummingbirds with yellow plumage
Here are some of the most common hummingbird species that contain yellow plumage:
- Calliope Hummingbird: The male Calliope hummingbird has bright purple feathers on its throat, with a white breast and belly. Yellow-green feathers cover the back and top of the head.
- Rufous Hummingbird: The male Rufous hummingbird is mostly rusty orange, with some green on the back. The throat is iridescent red, and the belly is whitish with small patches of yellow-green spots.
- Allen’s Hummingbird: The male Allen’s hummingbird has a green back, rufous sides, a throat that ranges from orange-red to yellow, and a belly that is dull orange-yellow.
- Costa’s Hummingbird: Males have a purple throat and crown, with a blue-green rear. The underparts are grey-white with green spotting, and the flanks have buffy-orange feathers.
- Broad-billed Hummingbird: Males are mostly bright metallic green, with a blue throat, whitish below, and a broad red bill. The flanks have bold yellow and black striping.
- Buff-bellied Hummingbird: This aptly named species has a mostly green head and upperparts, a red bill, a purple-red throat, and a bold buff-orange belly.
- Violet-crowned Hummingbird: Males are bright metallic green above with white underparts. The throat is brilliant violet, and the crown is violet with a yellow forehead band.
- Violet-headed Hummingbird: The male’s head and throat are a conspicuous violet, while the back is green and the underside is grey-white. Yellow feathers adorn the sides of the body.
- Green-crowned Brilliant: Males are emerald green above with a splash of blue on the crown. The tail is mostly rufous. Below they are yellowish green, with light grey flanks.
- Magnificent Hummingbird: Males have a shiny emerald green back. The throat is an iridescent bluish-violet. The chest is grey-white with thick green stripes, and the belly is whitish with green spots.
As you can see, many hummingbirds belonging to different genera exhibit some yellow coloring, whether on the plumage, tail, belly, or as highlights on other body areas.
Significance of yellow feathers in hummingbirds
The vibrant, flashy yellow feathers seen in various hummingbird species likely serve multiple purposes:
- Visual communication: The bright yellow plumage helps with species recognition between different types of hummingbirds. The distinct yellow markings also play a role in mating displays and communication.
- Camouflage: Yellow or green-yellow feathers provide camouflage by blending in with leaves and surrounding foliage, offering protection from predators.
- Thermoregulation: Some experts believe that yellow plumage helps with thermoregulation by absorbing heat from sunlight. This helps hummingbirds conserve energy while flying and feeding.
- Light reflection: The pale or bright yellow feathers may help reflect sunlight and enhance the iridescent effect of throat feathers during mating displays.
- Phylogenetics: Shared evolutionary yellow traits help establish genetic relationships between hummingbird species and genera.
Overall, the yellow plumage commonly exhibited in hummingbirds appears to serve a range of visual, physical, behavioral and phylogenetic functions.
Hummingbirds with the most yellow
While many hummingbirds have small patches or highlights of yellow, some species feature particularly prominent yellow plumage. Here are 5 hummingbirds that are especially yellow:
| Hummingbird | Yellow Plumage Characteristics |
|---|---|
| Buff-bellied Hummingbird | Male has bold buff-orange belly |
| Broad-billed Hummingbird | Male has conspicuous yellow and black flank stripes |
| Xantus’s Hummingbird | Male’s underparts are almost entirely yellow |
| Violet-crowned Hummingbird | Male has yellow forehead band |
| Eupherusa Yellow-throated Hummingbird | Male has all yellow underside with yellow facial markings |
As shown above, the Buff-bellied, Broad-billed, Xantus’s, Violet-crowned, and Eupherusa Yellow-throated hummingbirds stand out as featuring particularly prominent yellow plumage on various parts of their body.
Unusual yellow hummingbirds
Most hummingbirds that exhibit yellow plumage patterns do so on areas like the belly, flanks, tail, or as highlights on the head. However, some unique species display yellow on unconventional parts of their bodies:
- Yellow-eared Hummingbird: As the name suggests, this Colombian endemic species has bright yellow feathers extending from the eye region along the side of the head forming “ear tufts.”
- Coppery-headed Emerald: Males in this species have coppery-chestnut heads with a defined yellow forehead band and yellow shoulders.
- Fork-tailed Woodnymph: Males of this tropical South American species have a mostly violet head, but with a yellow spot below the eye.
- Sapphire-vented Puffleg: This Ecuadorian hummingbird has dark purple underparts unusually accented with yellow leg puffs.
- Golden-bellied Starfrontlet: Males in this Andean species have glittering turquoise crowns and throats, with a yellow lower belly.
These unusual South American hummingbirds highlight how yellow plumage can appear in distinctive patterns on less expected areas like the head, legs, and lower belly.
Importance of yellow plumage variations
The many diverse hummingbirds exhibiting yellow plumage showcase how minor variations in feather coloring and patterning can create pronounced visual differences between closely related species. Even small differences in the location, shape, and intensity of yellow markings provide key distinctions that likely help with:
- Species recognition
- Mate selection
- Social signaling
- Visual displays and courtship
- Camouflage and predator avoidance
- Thermoregulation
- Phylogenetic associations
Therefore, while subtle, the variations in yellow plumage play an integral role in the ecology, behavior, evolution, and visual biology of numerous hummingbird species.
Geographic trends in yellow plumage
Interestingly, hummingbirds with yellow plumage display some loose geographic distribution patterns:
- North America: Hummingbirds with yellow plumage are more common in western species such as Calliope, Rufous, Allen’s, Costa’s, and Broad-billed.
- Central America: Yellow plumage is seen in certain hermit species and the Stripe-tailed Hummingbird.
- South America: Many tropical lowland and Andean hummingbirds have yellow plumage, like the Violet-headed, Buff-bellied, Sapphire-vented Puffleg, and Golden-bellied Starfrontlet.
- West Indies: Yellow plumage is rare, though seen in some species like Vervain Hummingbird and Antillean Crested Hummingbird.
While exceptions occur, it appears yellow plumage patterns are more prevalent in western North American and South American hummingbird communities.
Conclusion
In summary, yellow plumage is exhibited in over a dozen hummingbird species, serving functions like communication, camouflage, heat regulation, and mate attraction. Some species, like the Buff-bellied and Xantus’s Hummingbirds, are especially yellow. Unique yellow patterns also occur in certain South American species. Subtle variations in the location and patterning of yellow feathers likely aid with species recognition and courtship. Yellow plumage is more common in western North American and South American hummingbird species. So in answer to the original question – yes, there are definitely hummingbirds with yellow on them!
